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Hard to believe that a year ago I found out I had gotten into Teach for America. Actually, I think it was a year ago this week. I remember the criticism, the anger from my family that I would do this, the fear of not knowing what the classroom would hold. I would read critics…

TFA tells us to aim for 80% mastery and we can change the life of every student. And maybe we can. But the reality is, if I get 60% mastery, it is a great day. The reality is despite hours of conversations, time spent during school and after school talking to kids about making the…

Today one of my students said to me, “Hey, you know what tomorrow is, right? It’s 9/11.” Another pipped and said, “Yeah, can you take us to NY to see the site?” I didn’t know what to say and it hit me. They were so young. 4, maybe 5 years old and they hear about…

In my last job, I got to work between 9:30 and 10:30 everyday. I woke up between 7 and 8 and hit the road around 9 or 9:30. Now I find myself leaving around 6:30 which means waking up at 5 so I can make it to New Teacher Institute on time. I know the…

If you are thinking about joining TFA and are placed in institute over the 4th of July, just be aware that doesn’t mean a holiday. We had to attend sessions this morning and then the afternoon is for planning. I did take a 3 hour drive to get out of Philly for a bit but…

It took me about 4 days to finish this post. What can I say? It’s been one of those experiences… I hate reflection. Seriously, I hate it. Reflection makes me overanalyze and overanalyzing causes me to stress and stress causes me to stop sleeping and lack of sleep makes me burst into tears very quickly. …

Through my own lack of know, I realized several weeks ago that I needed to complete 2 classroom visits/observations. I quickly contacted my TFA contact in Baltimore and asked for the names of science education science teachers in the area. With school ending, I knew I was down to the wire in terms of completing…

So this one time I hit a four-foot planter…in a Beetle. Not just any Beetle…Her name is Betty and she is a blue 2007 VW Bug. My dream car and my graduate school graduation present. I received her nearly 3.5 years before I graduated because I was driving a Chevy Blazer that was dying a…

In 2003, I graduated a semester early from college. I packed up my car and headed home where a job waited for me at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Finally! I was on my way to establishing a life long career as a scientist. I would cure cancer! I had the whole world in…